Back In Time : System Restore on Ubuntu

One of the most treasured features by novice computer users running Windows is the ability to easily roll back their system when trouble arises by using the built-in System Restore GUI. Ubuntu offers the same services to take snapshots of your computer when changes are made and the Back in Time application for Linux is a great tool to achieve the same easy-to-use GUI. The program utilizes existing services including rsync for creating and applying restore snapshots and diff for monitoring system changes. Back in Time allows you to backup all folders and restore any folders with write access in the event of a problem following a system change.

The first thing you’ll need to do is edit your /etc/apt/source.list file; use the following command to open the file in the editor:

Once this is complete you’ll just need to update your source list; use this command:

sudo apt-get update

That’s it for system changes – now onto the installation of Back in Time:

sudo apt-get install backintime-common backintime-gnome

Once the installation completes you can access Back in Time under Applications -> System Tools -> Back in Time. You can now use the GUI to select folders to backup and schedule the backups to suit your timetable